Is American Express Platinum worth the £575 annual fee?

Is The Platinum Card from American Express worth the £575 annual fee?  Can any card be worth it?

Today, in our ‘Top 10 Reasons’ series, I want to look at the top 10 reasons to apply for an American Express Platinum charge card (‘The Platinum Card’).

Do they make the £575 fee for Amex Platinum worth it?  That is up to you at the end of the day.  I have had the Platinum Card since 1999 and so it obviously works for me, but it is a very personal decision.

It can also change over time.  Amex Platinum may not be worth the fee today, but this may change as the benefits become more in line with your lifestyle as you get older. 

In simple terms, the more you travel outside the UK – in terms of separate trips, not total nights away – the more value you are likely to get from Amex Platinum.

The serious legal stuff about Amex Platinum:

You can apply here: American Express Platinum application page

What does it cost?  £575 annual fee. You can cancel at any point for a pro-rata refund.

What is the interest rate?  This is a charge card.  You cannot pay interest.  The full balance needs to be repaid at the end of each month.

The top 10 reasons to get Amex Platinum:

1.  You receive a metal card!

From April 2019, The Platinum Card is made from real metal!  Don’t worry, it works fine in cash machines and payment terminals.

2.  You receive 30,000 Membership Rewards points for signing up to The Platinum Card

Amex Platinum comes with a very generous sign-up bonus.  You won’t find a UK travel rewards card with a more valuable bonus.

You qualify for the bonus as long as you haven’t had a personal American Express Green, Gold or Platinum card, or the Amex Rewards Credit Card, in the previous 24 months.

You need to spend £4,000 within three months to receive the bonus.

3.  Those 30,000 Membership Rewards points convert into Avios at 1:1 – or into MANY other airline or hotel schemes

Membership Rewards are HUGELY flexible because you can convert them into lots of different things.  You aren’t stuck with Avios, Virgin Flying Club miles or whatever.  You can keep them with Amex for as long as you want and only convert them when you need them.

Click here to see what other reward programmes are Membership Rewards transfer partners.

4.  You receive one Membership Rewards point for every £1 you spend on Amex Platinum

There are a few exceptions (cash withdrawals do not earn points) but in reality virtually every £1 you spend will earn another point.

5.  You receive status with many major hotel chains

For as long as you keep the card, you will receive the following statuses:

• Gold in Marriott Bonvoy
• Gold in Radisson Rewards
• Gold in Hilton Honors
• Jade in Shangri-La Golden Circle (must apply by 31st March 2021)
• Gold in MeliaRewards

These will ensure that you receive extra benefits and points on every stay.  Hilton Honors Gold members, for example, receive free breakfast and an upgrade.

6.  You receive free travel insurance for you and your family

As long as you are under 70, you will receive comprehensive travel insurance.  For legal reasons, you need to opt-in to the travel insurance benefit by ticking the relevant box on the application form.

Your immediate family are also covered.

To receive full coverage you need to pay for your flights and hotels on an American Express card.  However, most ‘big stuff’ such as medical coverage is provided however you pay.

7.  You are entitled to two FREE Priority Pass cards, each of which gives two people airport lounge access

Your Priority Pass gets you and a guest into 1,200 airport lounges across the world for free, including the Aspire lounge in Heathrow Terminal 5 reviewed here.  You can order a second free Priority Pass card for whoever you nominate to have your free supplementary Platinum Card.  This means that you can get a family of four into a lounge if you issue the 2nd card to your partner.  You can see which airports have a Priority Pass lounge on their website here.

8.  You get access to various other lounges too

American Express Platinum gets you into Eurostar lounges, irrespective of your class of travel.  Just wave it at the reception desk!

You also get access to Plaza Premium airport lounges (they have an excellent one in Heathrow Terminal 5), Delta airport lounges and – in the US and Hong Kong – American Express’s own chain of Centurion Lounges.

9.  You get £10 of Addison Lee taxi credit each month

The first £10 you spend each calendar month on Addison Lee taxis is refunded to your card account.

10.  You get $200 back every time you do a onefinestay house rental, and various other travel benefits

Each and every time you book a house or apartment via onefinestay on your American Express Platinum card, you will receive a $200 credit to your account – however cheap the rental!

Other benefits include ‘Fine Hotels & Resorts’ (exclusive benefits at many top global hotels, including guaranteed free breakfast and a guaranteed 4pm check-out) and status with Hertz and Avis.

Conclusion

American Express Platinum is a very generous travel rewards card.  If you travel a lot, the benefits package can easily be worth much more than the annual fee – and of course, in Year 1, you receive the big sign-up bonus of 30,000 Membership Rewards points too.

Is Amex Platinum worth the annual fee? At least for the first year I would say yes, as the sign-up bonus of 30,000 points covers most of it. After that you need to weigh up how many of the benefits you use.

You can sign up for Amex Platinum, or find out more information, on the official website here.

Disclaimer: Head for Points is a journalistic website. Nothing here should be construed as financial advice, and it is your own responsibility to ensure that any product is right for your circumstances. Recommendations are based primarily on the ability to earn miles and points and do not consider interest rates, service levels or any impact on your credit history.  By recommending credit cards on this site, I am – technically – acting as a credit broker.  Robert Burgess, trading as Head for Points, is regulated and authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a credit broker.